We can probably all agree that planes are really not made for the convenience of people who are not within the bell curve of “typical.”

Case in point, people on U.S. domestic flights who use wheelchairs for mobility.

Unless they have a bulkhead seat, people who rely on their wheelchair to get from place to place have to use the airline’s wheeled chair to get to their seat, because the aisles of domestic planes are entirely too small to fit even the narrowest of wheelchairs.

People who use a wheelchair for mobility also generally can’t use the lavatory independently because their chair won’t fit in the lav. Can you imagine being an otherwise independent adult (yep, plenty of people who use wheelchairs are still 100% independent) and having to ask for help just because you have to pee on the plane?

Others who have problems on planes? People of size.

The rate of morbid obesity of Americans have tripled in the past 60 years and according to a CDC report from 2024, nearly 42% of adults in the U.S. were considered obese and over 22 million adults were said to have severe obesity. Yet the width of plane seats have continued to shrink. And then, to add insult to injury, the various airlines’ policies for people of size, with few exceptions, are absolutely unfair.

Another group of people who have problems on planes? Tall people.

Just as airlines have made seats more narrow over the years, they’ve also made the space between seats smaller and smaller. The average height for a man in the U.S. is 5’9″ and although they might be relatively comfortable in hose tiny seats in economy, once you hit 6 feet or so (which is still a very “typical” size), you have to contort your body, much like origami, just to sit and not have parts of your body encroaching the aisle or your seatmate.

But what if you’re REALLY tall? Like, over 7′ tall?

Of course, in that “non typical” part of the bell curve, you have really tall people. Like…REALLY tall. And think about it – it’s one thing if you’re 6′ tall and have practice origami. But what if your femurs (those are the long bones between your hips and you knees) are several inches longer than the pitch of your seat?

Of course, basketball players get to fly to/from games on custom planes that offer all the legroom they need (we flew on one of their planes once). But for ordinary people who just happen to be extraordinarily tall? I mean, it’s not as if everyone can always afford those larger first or business class seats. And many planes on domestic flights don’t even offer them (and frankly, even if they do, “really tall” people might even be “too tall” for those seats, too). So this is what all the other “really tall” people do.

Looking out the window? Forget it

Rumeysa Gelgi

At 7 feet, 0.7 inches tall, Rumeysa Gelgi currently holds the Guinness World Record as the tallest living woman. Back in 2022, Gelgi, who has Weaver syndrome, a rare genetic condition that causes bone overgrowth, needed to fly from her home country of Türkiye to San Francisco. It was her first flight ever and Turkish Airlines made the flight possible by removing several seats on the plane so  Gelgi could lie comfortably in a stretcher for the 9-hour flight.

Oliver Richters

7’2″ tall Oliver Richards is known on Instagram as The Dutch Giant. In April 2025, he posted about one of the few seats on a plane that work with his body frame.

The video shows him boarding a plane and walking towards a seat closer to the back of the aircraft. While making his way to his seat, you can see he had to hunch over so he didn’t bump his head on the plane’s ceiling (he also had to duck to avoid his head hitting an exit sign).

“Look at this. If I fly with Corendon, this is my seat,” the actor and bodybuilder told the camera as he took his place in a seat by the emergency exit and stretched out his legs.

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Back in 2019, Richters showed what he also sometimes does (complete with a plug):

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Beau Brown

American traveler beau Brown in 7 feet, 1 inch tall. Not long ago, he showed what it’s like for him to maneuver in a typical commercial airport:

@bigbeaubrown

POV of a 7’1 human in an airport #fyp #tall

♬ original sound – BigBeauBrown

Back in 2022, Brown booked an exit row seat so he would get extra legroom. But when he got on the plane, it was discovered he was still too tall for the seat. “My knees touched the seats in front of me, and I was pined in, unable to sit down or get up.” So the airline, which wasn’t named, rebooked Brown on another flight, this time in first class, so he’d have more legroom.

@bigbeaubrown

I didn’t fit on my plane so they gave me first class. It was probably because of my @cuts hoodie and joggers. They said dang this dude got CLASS. First class was still tight. #fyp #travel #tall

♬ Infinity – Jaymes Young

Brown doesn’t always get a sweet upgrade to first class just because he’s over 7 feet tall. So sometimes he does what Oliver Richters does and tries to get Southwest’s seat in the “second row” of the exit row, to afford him that legroom. In this video, he shows us that, plus the advantage of walking through a plane when you’re that tall.

@bigbeaubrown

Today was a good day for tall people!

♬ original sound – BigBeauBrown

Last one…just because it made me smile

I would love to give photo credit for this – the problems of getting your passport photo when you’re very tall – but have no idea of where it’s from. Meanwhile, it did make me smile, so…enjoy!

But who am I to talk?

Of course, if you’ve been reading our blog for a long time, you know that I’m pretty much the polar opposite of all of these really tall people – I’m only 4’6″ tall.

So yeah, I have my own issues when it comes to flying. Not so much anymore, but for years, gate agents didn’t think I was an adult. And my feet still don’t reach the floor when I sit in my seat on a plane. But if nothing else, I never have to worry that my not being “typically” shaped will have an affect on where or how I can sit on a plane.

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This post first appeared on Your Mileage May Vary